“Do not say, "Draw the curtain that I may see the painting." The curtain is the painting.”

—  Nikos Kazantzakis , book The Saviors of God

The Saviors of God (1923)
Context: "I do not know whether behind appearances there lives and moves a secret essence superior to me. Nor do I ask; I do not care. I create phenomena in swarms, and paint with a full palette a gigantic and gaudy curtain before the abyss. Do not say, "Draw the curtain that I may see the painting." The curtain is the painting.

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Nikos Kazantzakis 222
Greek writer 1883–1957

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